Medical tool grip mechanism which grips and controls medical tool

Abstract

One or more embodiments provide medical tool grip mechanism to which multiple types of medical instruments can be attached. A grip mechanism grips an instrument. The instrument has a shaft extending in a longitudinal direction, a treatment tool arranged at a distal end of the shaft, and a treatment tool control portion that is arranged at a proximal end of the shaft and controls the treatment tool. The grip mechanism has a gripping portion. The gripping portion grips the treatment tool control portion such that the treatment tool control portion is rotatable about a rotational axis extending in the longitudinal direction of the shaft, and movable in the longitudinal direction with respect to the shaft.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A medical tool grip mechanism which is configured to grip a medical tool including a shaft extending in a longitudinal axis of the shaft, a treatment tool arranged on a side of one end portion of the shaft in the longitudinal axis of the shaft, and a treatment tool control portion which is arranged on a side of the other end portion of the shaft in the longitudinal axis of the shaft and controls the treatment tool, the medical tool grip mechanism comprising:
 a gripping portion which is provided at a distal end of a manipulator arm, is rotatably supported by a drive shaft provided orthogonal to the longitudinal axis of the shaft so as to be rotatable between a grip position and a released position with respect to the manipulator arm about the drive shaft and is configured to grip the treatment tool control portion in such a manner that the treatment tool control portion is movable in the longitudinal axis of the shaft when the gripping portion is being rotated about the drive shaft of the gripping portion, 
 wherein the gripping portion includes a space for gripping the treatment tool control portion in the grip position, the space having a longitudinal axis thereof extending along a radial axis of the drive shaft in the grip position and having first and second ends along the longitudinal axis of the space such that, when the gripping portion is rotated about the drive shaft from the grip position to the released position, the treatment tool control portion in the space is moved toward the first end of the space along the longitudinal axis of the space while the longitudinal axis of the space of the gripping portion is rotated with respect to the longitudinal axis of the shaft, and 
 the medical tool grip mechanism is configured to couple the treatment tool control portion of the medical tool to the gripping portion at the grip position in such a manner that the treatment tool control portion is located in the space of the gripping portion and thus gripped by the gripping portion and is configured to decouple the treatment tool control portion of the medical tool from the gripping portion at the released position in such a manner that the treatment tool control portion comes out of the space of the gripping portion from a side of the first end of the space of the gripping portion. 
 
     
     
       2. The medical tool grip mechanism of  claim 1 , wherein
 the treatment tool and the treatment tool control portion are coupled to each other with a rod passing through an inside of the shaft. 
 
     
     
       3. The medical tool grip mechanism of  claim 2 , wherein
 the gripping portion includes an elongate hole which communicates the space with an outside of the gripping portion, 
 a first end portion of the rod on the side of the other end portion of the shaft has a smaller diameter than a middle portion of the rod, and 
 the first end portion of the rod passes through the elongate hole in a state in which the treatment tool control portion is gripped by the gripping portion. 
 
     
     
       4. The medical tool grip mechanism of  claim 3 , wherein
 the treatment tool control portion has a diameter larger than a diameter of a second end portion of the rod provided on the side of the one end portion of the shaft, wherein the second end portion of the rod is smaller than a diameter of the middle portion of the rod. 
 
     
     
       5. The medical tool grip mechanism of  claim 1 , wherein
 the treatment tool control portion has a spherical shape. 
 
     
     
       6. The medical tool grip mechanism of  claim 1 , comprising: a tool support which supports the shaft such that the shaft is rotatable about a rotational axis extending along the longitudinal axis of the shaft in a state in which the treatment tool control portion is gripped by the gripping portion. 
     
     
       7. The medical tool grip mechanism of  claim 6 , further comprising: an actuator to rotate the shaft about the rotational axis extending in the longitudinal axis of the shaft. 
     
     
       8. The medical tool grip mechanism of  claim 1 , wherein the first end of the space of the gripping portion opens in the radial axis of the drive shaft, and the gripping portion is configured to move to the released position from the grip position by being rotated about the drive shaft such that the first end of the space of the gripping portion moves toward the one end portion of the shaft. 
     
     
       9. The medical tool grip mechanism of  claim 8 , further comprising:
 a biasing member which biases the gripping portion in a direction from the grip position toward the released position, or in a direction from the released position toward the grip position. 
 
     
     
       10. The medical tool grip mechanism of  claim 1 , wherein the first end of the space of the gripping portion opens in the radial axis of the drive shaft, and the gripping portion is configured to move to the grip position from the released position by being rotated about the drive shaft such that the first end of the space of the gripping portion moves away from the one end portion of the shaft. 
     
     
       11. The medical tool grip mechanism of  claim 10 , further comprising:
 a biasing member which biases the gripping portion in a direction from the grip position toward the released position, or in a direction from the released position toward the grip position. 
 
     
     
       12. The medical tool grip mechanism of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 an adopter which fills a gap between the treatment tool control portion and the gripping portion. 
 
     
     
       13. The medical tool grip mechanism of  claim 1 , further comprising: a retaining mechanism including a pair of plungers supporting the shaft of the medical tool and configured to be decoupled from the shaft in response to a force greater than or equal to a specific value acting between the retaining mechanism and the shaft in the longitudinal axis of the shaft. 
     
     
       14. The medical tool grip mechanism of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a housing which houses the gripping portion, wherein 
 the housing includes a housing body and a cover attachable to, and detachable from, the housing body and having an opening through which the shaft passes such that a part of the shaft and the treatment tool is exposed to an outside of the housing and the treatment tool control portion is housed in the housing body. 
 
     
     
       15. The medical tool grip mechanism of  claim 14 , comprising:
 an opening adjustment mechanism which is provided at the opening of the cove and includes a sleeve, such that the sleeve is rotatable with respect to the opening of the cover to adjust a size of the opening provided at the cover. 
 
     
     
       16. The medical tool grip mechanism of  claim 14 , comprising:
 an inner cover attached to the housing body and having a hole through which the shaft passes, wherein 
 the hole is chamfered. 
 
     
     
       17. The medical tool grip mechanism of  claim 1 , further comprising: an actuator to displace the treatment tool control portion along the longitudinal axis of the shaft by rotating the gripping portion about the drive shaft. 
     
     
       18. The medical tool grip mechanism of  claim 1 , further comprising: a first electric actuator configured to rotate the shaft about a rotational axis of the shaft extending along the longitudinal axis of the shaft in response to an instruction from a remote control apparatus; and a second electric actuator configured to rotate the drive shaft to rotate the gripping portion about the drive shaft, so as to move the shaft along the longitudinal axis of the shaft in response to an instruction from the remote control apparatus. 
     
     
       19. A method for attaching and detaching a medical tool which includes a shaft extending in a longitudinal axis of the shaft, a treatment tool arranged on a side of one end portion of the shaft in the longitudinal axis of the shaft, a treatment tool control portion which is arranged on a side of the other end portion of the shaft in the longitudinal axis of the shaft and controls the treatment tool, and a gripping portion which is provided at a distal end of a manipulator arm and rotatably provided about a drive shaft orthogonal to the longitudinal axis of the shaft such that the gripping portion is rotatable about the drive shaft between a grip position and a released position with respect to the manipulator arm and is configured to grip the treatment tool control portion in a space formed in the gripping portion, the space of the gripping portion having a longitudinal axis extending along a radial axis of the drive shaft in the grip position, the method comprising:
 attaching the medical tool to the gripping portion, by pushing the shaft along the longitudinal axis of the shaft to push the treatment tool control portion into the space of the gripping portion located at the released position, wherein the pushing of the shaft causes the treatment tool control portion to be inserted into the space from a side of a first end of the space of the gripping portion and then to cause the treatment tool control portion in the space to be moved toward a second end of the space of the gripping portion along the longitudinal axis of the space while the gripping portion is rotated about the drive shaft from the released position to the grip position; and 
 detaching the medical tool from the gripping portion gripping the medical tool by pulling the shaft in the longitudinal axis of the shaft from the gripping portion to rotate the gripping portion about the drive shaft from the grip position to the released position, wherein the pulling of the shaft causes the treatment tool control portion in the space to be moved toward the first end of the space along the longitudinal axis of the space while the longitudinal axis of the space of the gripping portion is rotated with respect to the longitudinal axis of the shaft is and then the treatment tool control portion to come out of the space of the gripping portion at the released position from the side of the first end of the space of the gripping portion.